HONG KONG.- Sotheby’s Hong Kong Autumn Sale Series 2015 will take place from 3 – 7 October at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. This season, the Modern Asian Art category approaches the sale from an academic perspective, curating various special sections to be offered in the Modern and Contemporary Art Evening Sale and Modern Asian Art Day Sale. Dynamic Expressionism – Wu Dayu will lead the Evening Sale on 4 October, featuring five masterpieces by the founder of Modernism in Chinese art, in addition to his manuscripts and literature. Another highlight, Embodying the Dao of Martial Arts – Important Sculptures by Ju Ming from the Collection of Johnson Chang Tsong-Zung, will offer 26 works by the celebrated Taiwanese sculptor Ju Ming from the private collection of the Hanart TZ Gallery director. In the Modern Asian Art Day Sale on 5 October, two special sections focusing on the National School of Fine Art and the Central Academy of Craft Arts will reveal how Modernism developed in China, alongside Lalan: A Life beyond all Expectations, featuring an assemblage of eight works by Lalan created from the 1960s to 1980s. The Modern Asian Art Autumn Sale encompasses approximately 160 works in total, estimated in excess of HK$242 million / US$31 million.

Vinci Chang, Sotheby’s Head of Modern Asian Art, said: ‘This season, the Modern Asian Art Department curated a number of special sections to explore the value of modern Asian masters and the origins of various art systems by tracing the history of modern art. We are delighted to present in the Evening Sale a collection of Ju Ming sculptures of impeccable quality, and we sincerely thank Mr. Johnson Chang for his support of and trust in Sotheby’s. Masterpieces by Wu Guanzhong, Zao Wou-Ki and Chen Cheng-Po will also be prominently featured in the Evening Sale, a feast of art appreciation to which we look forward to welcoming collectors.’

SPECIAL SECTION: DYNAMIC EXPRESSIONISM – WU DAYU
Modern and Contemporary Asian Art Evening Sale, 4 October
Wu Dayu was the first Chinese artist to travel to Paris, having been dubbed ‘the forerunner of the Hangzhou School of Fine Art’. Dynamic Expressionism – Wu Dayu features five oil and crayon works by the artist, accompanied by his manuscripts, literature and poems. These assets outline the milestones in Wu’s artistic journey as well as his contribution to pioneering abstract art in China since the 1940s.

An advocate of abstract expressionism, Wu Dayu drew upon the Confucian, Buddhist, and Daoist philosophies, deriving his notion of Shixiang from the dichotomy of figurative and abstract. In this view, the concrete world contains abstract beauty, and abstract beauty is reliant upon figurative objects. The solid foundation he laid for Chinese abstract art influenced subsequent Chinese masters who developed their artistic careers in France, such as Zao Wou-Ki, Chu Teh-Chun, Wu Guanzhong and Lalan. Collectively, they represent a school of Chinese abstract art with significant global influence. Highlights from this section include Untitled 115 and Untitled 43, both from Wu Dayu’s ‘Rhymes of Flowers’ series which draws upon the Chinese tradition of portraying the virtues of man through flowers – a favourite motif of the artist. As a modernist artist, Wu Dayu merged Eastern and Western perspectives while at the same time furthering the tradition of floral symbolism.

DISTINGUISHED PIECES BY MODERN CHINESE MASTERS
Modern and Contemporary Asian Art Evening Sale, 4 October
Wu Guanzhong (1919–2010), Peach Blossoms
1973, oil on canvas, 61.1 x 46.3 cm
Est. HK$30 – 40 million / US$3.8 – 5.1 million
Appearing at auction for the first time, Peach Blossoms (1973) is one of the rare pieces by Wu Guanzhong with a theme of joy and celebration. In 1973, the artist was emerging from one of the most difficult periods of his life at the Li Village. After returning to Beijing to resume his career, he rediscovered the artistic freedom that enabled him to produce a body of works bearing themes of the capital city. Depicted in this painting is a peach blossom tree in full bloom. Numerous dots of red are painted in varying intensity, density and brightness, to form an ebullient riot of scarlet hues. Other floral-themed works executed by Wu during the same period include The Crabapple Flowers, now displayed in the VIP Room of Beijing Railway Station, and Plum Blossoms, which was sold for HK$66.8 million at Sotheby’s Hong Kong Spring Sale 2015, setting the record for a Wu Guanzhong painting sold in the city.

Zao Wou-Ki (1920–2013), 08.03.66
1966, oil on canvas, 150 x 162 cm
Est. HK$20 – 30 million / US$2.6 – 3.8 million
Also making its debut at auction, 08.03.66 is a classic work by Zao Wou-Ki from the 1960s, noted for its scale, grandeur and nuances. The artist’s feelings about heaven, earth and nature are channeled into this painting, manifested in abstract lines and a panoramic layout. Dense black hues dominate the centre of the canvas, but the heavy gloom evoked is relieved by blank spaces of grey and white above and below. Amid the contrasts of emptiness and density, movement and stillness, Zao Wou-Ki applies his painterly skills to achieve a fine balance, creating infinite aesthetic possibilities from a limited palette. In 1977, he was invited to hold a solo exhibition at the Fuji Television Gallery in Japan. Fourteen large-scale paintings spanning the 1950s and 1960s were showcased, including 08.03.66, confirming its significance in Zao’s oeuvre.

Yun Gee (1906–1963), Seated Man Reading
Circa 1926-1927, oil on board, 59 x 47 cm
Est. HK$4 – 7 million / US$513,000 – 897,000
Seated Man Reading is the largest painting from Yun Gee’s ‘San Francisco’ period. The artist’s robust portrayal of geometric forms in the Diamondist style opens up a multi-dimensional space filled with the dance of rich, vivid colours. A shaft of light beaming down to engulf the seated man’s hairline, cheek, opened book, elevated leg and the ground conveys shifting light and a sense of time. Originally belonging to Li-Lan, a member of the artist’s family, this painting was showcased at the first large-scale Yun Gee retrospective exhibition in Asia, at The Taipei Fine Arts Museum in 1992. Making its auction debut with well-documented provenance and exhibition records, Seated Man Reading is expected to be highly sought after by collectors.

Chen Cheng-Po (1895–1947), West Lake
1928, oil on canvas, 80.5 x 130 cm
Est. HK$10 – 15 million / US$1.3 – 1.9 million
West Lake, a large-scale museum-quality work by Chen Cheng-Po, was undertaken in the final year of his studies at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts. It chronicles his first visit to the West Lake in Hangzhou, the stunning scenery of which he confidently captured in the current work. The painting first came into public view at the Chen Cheng-Po West Lake Commemorative Exhibition in 1928, a showcase organised by his peers from the area which drew the attention of the Hangzhou and Shanghai art circles, paving the way for the artist’s acceptance of a teaching post at Shanghai Xinhua Academy of Fine Arts. As Chen Cheng-Po’s first contact point with the Chinese art circle, West Lake holds unique historical importance in the artist’s oeuvre.

SPECIAL SECTION - UNDER THE CLOUDS OF WAR: NATIONAL SCHOOL OF FINE ART
Modern Asian Art Day Sale, 5 October
The Hangzhou School of Fine Art was founded in 1928 and quickly became a flagship for Chinese modernism. Under the leadership of Lin Fengmian and Wu Dayu, two pioneering artists who had travelled in France, the school encouraged study in a free, open environment, nurturing scores of talented artists during its first ten years. The outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1937 forced the Academy to merge with the Beiping School of Fine Art in 1938 and change its name to the National School of Fine Art. Gradually, it began to attract famed artists from institutions in Beiping (now Beijing), Shanghai and Guangzhou, creating a creative environment for modern art to flourish. Through works by pioneers such as Lin Fengmian, Ding Yanyong and Guan Liang, this specially-curated section, Under the Clouds of War: National School of Fine Art, bears witness to the development of Chinese oil paintings.

Ding Yanyong (1902–1978), Still Life
1971, oil on board, 45.5 x 30.5 cm
Est. HK$500,000 – 700,000 / US$64,000 – 90,000
An admirer of Matisse in his early years, Ding Yanyong’s Still Life combines bright colours with the calligraphic lines he studied throughout his career. The style of this painting is rooted in the Western still life tradition, with four peonies, delicately arranged in a glass vase, glowing with life and instantly evoking the feeling of midsummer. With clean but powerful colours, the artist uses simplicity to harness complexity, conjuring season, time, climate and even emotions. The composition, figurative in the foreground and abstract in the background, is representative of the Chinese artistic philosophy of the interplay between the tangible and the intangible.

SPECIAL SECTION - LANTERNS ON THE BRINK: THE CENTRAL ACADEMY OF CRAFT ART
Modern Asian Art Day Sale, 5 October
In 1949, the Communists wrested control of mainland China from the Nationalists, and with them brought Soviet realism and the creative standards of showcasing propagandist elements. In order to serve the prevailing political forces, the National School of Fine Art changed its name twice and overhauled its staff and teaching methods. Modernist masters such as Lin Fengmian and Wu Dayu lost their jobs. Over the 30 ensuing years, prior to the implementation of reform and opening-up policy, the baton for modern art was passed to the Central Academy of Craft Arts in Beijing. This season, with Lanterns on the Brink: the Central Academy of Craft Arts, Sotheby's shines a spotlight on the masterpieces of three key arts professors, Yuan Yunfu, Zhu Danian and Wu Guanzhong, who made ‘decorative painting’ synonymous with ‘modernism’, ensuring its heritage was passed down through state-run schools.

SPECIAL SECTION - LALAN: A LIFE BEYOND ALL EXPECTATION
Modern Asian Art Day Sale, 5 October
Lalan (1921–1995), Asymétrie symétrique
1978, oil on canvas, 195 x 130 cm
Est. HK$800,000 – 1.2 million / US$103,000 – 154,000
Lalan is better known to the world as Zao Wou-Ki’s first wife and muse, but beneath this façade is a talented vocalist, composer, dancer and artist in her own right. Offered in this sale are eight of her artworks from the 1960s to 1980s showcasing how she emerged from Zao Wou-Ki’s shadow to forge her own artistic path and herald a new chapter in 20th century modern art. Asymétrie symétrique, depicts the undulating movement of dark lines in different shades, like the ascent and descent of musical notes across a tonal range – strong and decisive at times, soft and wistful at others.